William h



W. H. BIRGE. Storage Tank for Petroleum.

(No Model.)

No. 239,43fl.

ATTORNEYS.

I a leak it might, 4O whole body of I that it will 'other inclosure also,

UNrrnn i TATES a ms-5 3 CEO STORAGE-TANK Fen, esraotse'm.

srnerrrcArron forming part or e ace No .,aeg, 4 1, dated,

iiaaiissit Application filed January 7, 1881,. (No model.)

To all'whom it may concern I Be itknown that I, WILLIAM H. BIRGi-E, of Franklin. in the county of Venango and State of Pennsylvania, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Storage-Tanks for Fetroleum, of which and exact description. I

Figure 1 is a diametrical section of the tank and floating cover, taken at right angleswith the joist of the staging. Fig. 2 is alike section of the tank'para-llel with the joist of the is a topview of one of the staging. Fig. '3 sections of the partial roof.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

Large storage tanks for petroleum are usually built under roofs and other inclosures to protect them from the weather, and especially from wind-storms, as they are liable to be blown down 'when"they' storage-tank has been used for some time a thick sediment will collect in the bottom, and in order to remove this sediment and clean out the tank it has been the practice to remove one of the lower sheets of thet-ank, so that a man can go in and carry out the sediment, the sediment being always so thick that it would not run out of the bottom of the tank evefi if a hole were made for that purpose In storage-tanks which have floating covers it is obvious that when'the oil is all drawn'ofl', the covers will be found on the bottom of the tank, and such covers always being'of great weight tan ks'ofthischaractercannot be cleaned of the sediment without the labor and difliculty of raising the cover. Another difficulty with this kind of tank, as they are now constructed, isthat should the floatingcoverspring before being discovered, sink to the bottom-of the tank, in which case the oil would have to be pumped out at great expense and labor in order to repair the cover and set it afloat again.

The object of my invention is a storage-tank so constructed thatt-he fioatingcover can never sink to the bottom of the tank, and so braced stand allweather and wind-storms without the necessityof an external roof or a. floating cover so constructed that it will serve the purpose of a the following is a full, clear,

are empty. After a] 'or guides 9,

space from rain and roof and aflord ready access. to the interior of the tank, and also a partial roofing made in sections whereby the. body of oil is protected from rain and from fire, and in the details of construction, as hereinafter described.

The tank A is circular in form and provided" onthe inside with the strong staging or platform, formed preferably of the posts B, and the stringers or joists 0 placed upon them for the floating cover D to rest upon when the oil is drawn from the tank. v

In buildingthe staging, I prefer-to use gaspipes for the posts B of a length equal to abouttwo-thirds the height of the tank, screwed or otherwise secured tot-he flanges c, which are riveted to the bottom of the tank. The upper ends of the posts B should also have the flanges e screwed or otherwise secured to them for the strlngersltl to restupon... The stringers or joist 0, preferably of wood, should be placed upon the posts B, and have the strips F nailed across them to secure them all firmly together, and the ends of the stringers or joist O and the ends of the cross-pieces F should come firmly against the sides of the tank, thus bracing the tank from the inside, making it firm and secure against any wind-storm.

The floating cover D is of smaller diameter than the tank, and is formed with the flange d, to theoutside of which is secured the stops which come against the inside of the tank and make the annular space between the outside of the cover and the tankof equal. width all around the cover. To protect this fire, I provide a sort of portable cover, H, which is made up of the sections h, each section being of such size and weight that one or two persons can handle them, and made by taking-a piece of sheet metal, say, six feet in length and one foot in 0 width, and cutting it to about the same circle as the tank, and fasten four legs, 73, to it, two at each end, and far enough apart to ,justfit over the edge of the tank. These sections when in place on the tank form the eontinu. one cover H over the space which protects the oil from rain, and in case the gas which may collect in the space under this'cover should take fire the explosion which would follow would lift up the sections, but they would and vated, as shown, so as denly fall back to place, being guided by the legs, and thus smother the flames, and save the oil from burning.

In case any gas collects under or about the center of the floating cover, I provide the cover at that point with the escape-pipe G for conveying it 011'. .-I also provide the floating cover with the man-hole K, which afl'ords ready access to the interior of the tank for any purpose. The cover-seat of the man-hole should be eleto prevent any water which may fall-on the ,cover from flowing. into the tank, and .I also provide the cover with the siphon-pipe J for drawin g ofi' the water which falls on the cover. 7

Having thus described myinvention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patentv i.

1. In a storage-tank for petroleum, the inthe tank, the

I side staging formed of posts B and connected 2o stringers]? G, the posts being provided with top flanges, e, and secured to flanges e on the botltom of tank, as and for the purpose specifie 2. The storage-tank provided with the rootv 2 5 'H, constructed of the sections h, each section having the legs or guides i to fit the edge of the tank, substantially as specified.

3. The tankhaving the staging on the inside and the partial roof H, in combination 0 with the floating cover of 'less diameter than cover being provided with the steps or guides g, the man-hole K, and escapepipe G, substantially as described.

' v v 'WILLIAM H. BIRGE,

Witnesses:

E. D. ALLEN,

GEORGE ALLEN. 

